Meet Our Team

For nearly than 20 years, Michael Hepperlen has partnered with organizations to strengthen leadership capability, develop confident and effective leaders, and support better people and business decisions. He is passionate about helping leaders grow in clarity, courage, and authenticity so they can create positive impact for their teams, organizations, and communities. Clients appreciate Michael's thoughtful presence, genuine curiosity, and ability to bring both humanity and scientific rigor to complex leadership challenges.

Expertise

•  Proven experience in executive coaching and leadership development, supporting senior leaders, C-suite executives, and high-potential talent in building confidence, clarity, and leadership effectiveness
• Deep expertise in leadership assessment and succession planning, helping organizations make strategic talent decisions, identify high-potential talent, and build leadership readiness for the future
• Skilled at applying research, talent insights and analytics, and HR best practices to address real-world client challenges, including competency modeling, role profiling, leadership readiness evaluation, employee engagement, and workforce planning initiatives
• Known for a thoughtful, collaborative, and human-centered approach, partnering closely with clients to understand organizational context and deliver practical, creative, and sustainable solutions

Impact

• Designed and delivered executive and leadership coaching engagements supporting leader growth, increased confidence, and stronger leadership performance across levels and industries
• Developed and implemented leadership development strategies and programs aligned to organizational needs and business priorities
• Led large-scale and highly tailored leadership assessment initiatives, integrating scientific rigor with practical business application
• Advised organizations on leadership readiness, workforce planning, and succession strategy to strengthen leadership pipelines and future capability
• Applied people analytics and organizational research to generate meaningful insight into leadership and workforce trends

Credentials

• Ph.D. Industrial/Organizational Psychology, University of Nebraska at Lincoln
• M.A., Industrial/Organizational Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha
• M.A., Counseling, University of North Dakota
• B.A., Psychology, Gustavus Adolphus College
• Organizational Coaching Level 1 Accreditation, Institute of Executive Coaching & Leadership

Away from the office, Michael enjoys spending time with his wife and two children. He is actively involved with his church and loves to travel, swim, and fish. He has ridden in RAGBRAI (a 600-mile bike ride across Iowa) three times. He can frequently be found spending his vacation time traveling with his family to northern Minnesota and on road trips across the country.